Mini Raspberry Mousse Cakes

These Mini Raspberry Mousse Cakes are two layers of light, creamy raspberry and cream cheese mousse stacked on a layer of red velvet cake and topped with a chocolate heart.

All through the holidays I thought about making some kind of chocolate mousse dessert but it always got knocked off the list because I’ve never made it and I was worried about trying it for the first time when I had 20 dinner guests coming to the house. Now that all of the big holiday parties are over and I have a little more time I was ready to give mousse-making a try. With Valentine’s Day just around the corner Melinda and I had been trying to come up with something pink, pretty, and delicious and raspberry mousse sounded perfect. We created these simple Mini Raspberry Mousse Cakes and they turned out awesome! They are individual desserts that are perfect for a romantic dinner for two or to serve the kids for a fun holiday treat.

I know they look complicated but I swear they aren’t, they just take a little time. For the first layer we used a boxed Red Velvet cake mix and baked the cake according to the instructions on the box. Once it was cooled we cut off the domed top and used a small glass to cut out 6 circles that were about 3 inches across.

Next we made our forms. I cut parchment paper to fit around the cake circle and high enough that I could put my layers of mousse in it (this is taller than I needed, better too much than too little!). Then I taped the paper together. This made a cylinder to mold the mousse. Once the mousse firmed I was able to remove the paper easily.

Then you make your mousse. There are two layers one raspberry and one cream cheese. You whip up some whipped cream and divide it into two parts. In the first half add raspberry jelly and sprinkle in some gelatin to help it firm up and to the second half add cream cheese and again add gelatin. Then you pipe each layer into the parchment paper molds on top of the red velvet cake. First the raspberry mousse and then on top of that the cream cheese mousse.

Once filled put the cakes in the refrigerator and let them set for at least an hour. When you are ready to serve garnish with some whipped cream, chocolate hearts and fresh raspberries. I’m so glad I finally gave it a try, it was delicious! Not too sweet and very light. I think it will be a perfect treat for my sweetheart on Valentine’s Day.